WICB to tread cautiously on Samuels issue

West Indies Cricket Board on Friday adopted a wait-and-watch policy, saying they were "not going to act on rumour or gossip."

Unrattled by the Nagpur police claims that Marlon Samuels had links with a bookie during the recent one-day series in India, the West Indies Cricket Board on Friday adopted a wait-and-watch policy, saying they were "not going to act on rumour or gossip."

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WICB spokesman Tony Deyal said the Board had not received any communication from BCCI or ICC yet and would take necessary action only after getting a formal report.

"We have not been officially contacted by the BCCI or ICC. However, we are not going to act on rumour or gossip and will not be panicked, particularly since we are talking about the career and future of a young cricketer of talent and promise," he was quoted as saying in media reports.

Deyal, however, indicated that the Board would not take things lightly if the claims by Nagpur police turned out to be true.

"We have zero tolerance policy on gambling and we strictly adhere to the ICC codes," he added.

Meanwhile, Samuels' mother Lunan Samuels expressed shock over the whole episode and said she did not believe that her son had links with a bookie.

"It's surprising to me and no, I don't believe it," she said, adding that she met her son yesterday and he did not tell her that he was being investigated by the Indian police.